KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Behind a huge 31-point performance from senior guard Curtis Jones, Iowa State still could not get past BYU in its Big 12 quarterfinal game. An explosion of 3-point shots from both sides made it clear defense would be hard to come by, which showed in the 96-92 final score.

Jones had to step up, as did the entire team, since guards Keshon Gilbert and Tamin Lipsey were out with groin injuries.

“We want to get our guys healthy, but I’m also excited to get back to the practice court because I’m confident our best is still in front of us,” Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger said.

Down by 10 eight minutes into the game, Iowa State found itself trending in a similar direction to its senior night loss to BYU just nine days prior. The Cyclones were getting torched by the Cougars outside and needed a spark of their own.

Four minutes later, Jones made three baskets in a row for Iowa State.

The first was a jumper that started to put the Cyclones back in play. The next two were back-to-back 3-pointers that tied the game.

But Jones and the Cyclones weren’t satisfied just yet. They wanted the lead, and the man who made it happen was Jones.

After BYU and Iowa State traded five points, sophomore forward Milan Momcilovic hit a 3 that tied the game up at 32. Jones made it his mission to put the Cyclones in front.

After another set of back-to-back 3s from Jones, Iowa State found itself in front by six after a 9-0 run that happened over the course of 49 seconds.

“[Jones] puts in a lot of work into his game,” junior forward Joshua Jefferson said. “It’s not a surprise to see him go out there and hit so many 3s in a half.”

Even so, Jones wasn’t done. The next eight Cyclone points came from him, and BYU was forced to call a timeout and regroup.

The Cougars went on a late run to shorten the 10-point gap Iowa State built, but behind Jones’ 22 first half points on 6-of-8 shooting from deep, the Cyclones took a 53-49 lead into the break.

“I was getting some looks that might not be good shots to some, but I feel like it’s a good shot for me,” Jones said. “When I got it going, I might as well just keep shooting them because they were going in at the time.”

Jones ended his day with 31 points after going 7-for-15 outside and 11-for-22 from the floor. That effort of seven made 3-point shots set the single-game record for the most 3-pointers made by an Iowa State player at the Big 12 Tournament.

The team ended 13-for-30 outside, and that set the season-high for most 3s made in a game for the Cyclones. The previous high was 11, which was set in four games, most recently against Arizona.

“The shot making in this game was crazy,” Jones said. “Both teams just shot at a high rate.”

Momcilovic followed Jones in the point total with 18 on 8-of-13 shooting and was 2-for-6 from beyond the arc. He did a lot of work inside to contribute to Iowa State’s 40 points in the paint.

Jefferson and senior center Dishon Jackson each added 14 and both did it by going 6-of-9 from the field. One of Jefferson’s baskets was a 3.

The other contributors outside were senior guard Nate Heise and sophomore guard Cade Kelderman. Heise made two of his four and Kelderman connected on one of his two attempts.

“Everyone around me has done a great job uplifting me and giving me the confidence to just go out there and be confident,” Kelderman said.

Kelderman saw action today, with Gilbert and Lipsey both sidelined for the contest. It also meant that Heise was a part of the starting five again, and Jones made his way in as well.

“You can go down the list, everybody had more of a role than what they had and they played more minutes than what they usually do,” Heise said.

Jones has said many times that it doesn’t matter if he starts or comes off the bench. He knows he is going to get his minutes and will make contributions, and that was evident in his performance Thursday.

Though the second half didn’t go Jones’ way, his first half put the Cyclones in a position to compete for a win.